Two Hearts
by arianacabello
Summary: "Yeah, maybe she will kill you, and then me afterwards. But that won't make me love you any less." The boyish smile returned, only smaller. "If I'm risking something by being with you, then frankly I don't care. You're worth that, Tori." / Or, Beck and Tori talk things over after the PMA's.
1. One

It had been an exact week since the Platinum Music Awards. Everyone was still buzzing about Tori's amazing performance that night, how Jade had given up her spot, and how thankfully Tori was acting like her normal old self again.

Well, _almost_.

You see there was one thing about last week that hadn't left the Latina's mind quite yet—she and Beck almost kissing, and twice for that matter. Up until that point, Tori had never fully realized that she did indeed have feelings for Beck; or, maybe she did fully realize it but chose to act as if what she felt was nonexistent. After all, he and Jade _did_ just break up; she didn't want to seem like a needy girl that was oh-so desperate for a boyfriend, especially since he knew he wanted time to himself.

Sometimes, however, Tori felt like she would go absolutely mad if she didn't let someone, _anyone_ know how she was feeling, how she'd been feeling for almost two whole years. Honestly, who could blame her though?

Ever since she'd arrived at Hollywood Arts, Beck had been there for her no matter what, he was always supporting her and had definitely become one of her best guy friends next to André. His cool and calm demeanor was what attracted Tori to him at first, but his confident and caring side and ultimately won her over.

By now he pretty much knew her like the back of his hand, and her swift attempts to avoid him the last two days definitely hadn't gone unnoticed. Occasionally Tori could sense he was behind her, watching her and practically begging for her to talk to him; but she simply refused to. She knew that if she were to her feelings would gush out and bad things would happen.

Today, though, Beck was determined to get a chance to talk to her just as much as Tori was determined not to say one word to him.

After Trina dropped her off early that morning (the older Vega was in quite a hurry to audition for a new play the school was putting on), Tori quietly slipped inside the front doors of the school and scurried to her locker. She looked right, and then left to make sure Beck wasn't anywhere in sight before she opened her locker and began to stuff her things inside.

She was about to put the first few things in when she felt a presence behind her. "Tori?"

Tori shrieked once she heard Beck's voice, instantly making her notepad and books slip from her arms and clatter to the linoleum floor with a small thud. She groaned and started to pick them up, and Beck swiftly moved from behind her to help.

"Thanks, but I'm fine." She stood and straightened out her back, daring herself to look at him. He still had one book tightly grasped in his left hand. She knew what he was trying to do, and she didn't like it one bit.

"Can I have my book back?" She asked, holding out her palm.

A smirk edged its way onto Beck's lips. "Looks like I'm in luck today, I got you to say two things to me."

Tori let out a small sigh. "I know, I know. I've just been really busy lately, alright?" She hurriedly snatched the book from his hand and prepared to leave, but she wasn't able to.

"Hold on, I'm not done yet." Beck reached out and gently took hold of her arm, pulling her back until her body was flush against his. His minty breath touched her face and she felt very small under his gaze.

"Tori, I miss you, alright? I really do. I miss talking to you at lunch and I miss us hanging out." His voice was quiet and he sounded a bit hurt.

The brunette chewed on her lip nervously. "I miss it too, honestly."

"Then what's the problem?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. "Look, I know things have been a little weird between us but we can't sort it out if we don't talk about it."

Tori nodded and sighed softly, taking a step back as he let go of her arm. "You're right, you're right. We can talk after school, okay? Maybe we can grab a bite to eat at Nozu or something?"

Beck shook his head. "Eh, I was thinking about somewhere a little less…crowded."

A 'sure' escaped Tori's mouth before she even got the chance to think about what she was getting into.

* * *

Tori exhaled deeply, bringing her knees to her chest as she breathed in the fresh ocean air. The calm waves lapped gently as a light breeze stirred the palm trees and lifted a few strands of her hair away from her bare shoulder. It felt odd to be in such a relaxing place when her insides were anything but. She nervously glanced over at Beck, who was leaning on an elbow as he calmly sipped on his bottle of pink lemonade.

"If you're not gonna say anything, then maybe I should just go…" he began slowly, still wondering why on Earth she agreed to talk to him in the first place.

Beck held up a hand. "I'm just glad to finally be able to talk with you. You don't think I know you've been trying your best to avoid me?"

Tori looked away, ashamed. She wasn't exactly sure where the crazy notion that Beck would dismiss her unusual behavior had come from; either way she felt very bad about it. No matter how she was feeling, he didn't deserve that kind of treatment.

"Beck, look I'm sorry, alright?" She toyed with one of the faux silver sequins on her tank top, still refusing to meet his gaze. "Everything's been such a whirlwind since the PMA's—"

"No, no, I get it. And I know how you're feeling right now, Tor. Or at least I'm pretty sure I do. You've been avoiding me because you're scared."

She suddenly glanced up at him, raising her eyebrows. "Scared of…?"

"You're scared that what happened last week is gonna happen again. You think that us being here alone," He paused, quickly gesturing to the beach surrounding them and the few people scattered about, "is gonna lead to another one of those 'moments' between us, and Jade will find out and start breathing fire on us while steam shoots out of her ears."

Tori let out a giggle in spite of herself at his joke, and it made him smile a little. He cocked and eyebrow as he polished off the rest of his drink. "Well? Am I right?"

She shrugged. "Kind of, yeah. I mean when we almost kissed the first time, I wasn't thinking about Jade, or anyone else. And that's only because right then and there it felt right. Like that's the way things are supposed to be." She chewed on her lip and fiddled with her thumbs. It felt like she had said too much already and half of what she needed to say hadn't even left her mouth yet.

Beck's eyes wandered over her face briefly before answering her question in a soft voice. "Glad to know I wasn't the only one who felt like that."

Her cheeks grew warm, but she didn't look away from him. A silence fell between them and a small war raged within Tori as she tried to decide what she should say next. "No, you weren't. But that's not how things are supposed to be, Beck."

"Says who? Jade?" He challenged, sitting up slightly. "Yes, we dated. Yes, we had our fun. And yes, at some point, I'm sure I loved her. But we broke up, Tori. It happened, and I'm over it."

"I know, I know…" She groaned and covered her face with her hands. "But, it's so hard for me to choose!"

Beck raised his brows. "Choose what?"

"Between you and Jade!" She explained, gesturing with her hands. "I mean, I've been trying forever to get Jade to at least _think_ about being my friend, and then you come along with your fluffy hair and your cute smile and you just mess me all up inside! If I chose you, then Jade would go crazy and—"

"Wait, you think my smile is cute?" He interrupted, flashing her a boyish grin. "That's nice to know."

Tori held back a smile and instead sighed. "You know that's not the point. I'm just saying that Jade will never be my friend if you and I try to make a go at this, but then you'll be disappointed if I don't—"

"Hey now, wait a minute." He put his hand on her forearm and looked at her a bit sternly. "You have got to stop using Jade as your excuse. She doesn't run you or dictate your relationships. You should be doing what's best for _you_, not for her."

"Yeah, I know but it's really hard for me to try and do that." The breeze that blew mimicked the tremors in her stomach, and a tiny sigh slipped past her lips. "Do you know how it feels to be around someone you really like, or possibly _love_ and not being able to say one word? And you can't spill how you feel because they mean so much to you and you don't want to ruin a good friendship?"

The words tumbled effortlessly from her lips and she tried to blink back the few tears she felt. She had never poured out her feelings to anyone like this before, not even André.

Beck released a huge sigh, seizing the opportunity to speak now that she was silent.

"I don't think you realize how much I love and care about you, Tori Vega. You're this bright, cheery and amazingly talented girl who also happens to be my best friend. I know you inside and out and ever since I met you I've felt connected to you somehow." He paused and lightly squeezed her forearm. "I can't explain how I feel half the time, but that's pretty much the gist of how the last year or so has been."

Tori looked down at her hands folded neatly in her lap, considering his words. A few strands of her hair fell from behind her ear, and she shivered slightly as Beck gently pushed it back where it belonged.

"Besides André, you're the best guy friend I've ever had. And I never thought about you any other way until last week..." She glanced up at him, trying to read his face. She could tell he knew she wasn't being completely truthful. "No, I mean I never really came to terms with how I felt until last week. I know what I want, but..."

"But?" His voice was soft and Tori was sure that by now, he was beyond tired of playing cat and mouse with her. Even if he was frustrated, he didn't show it in the least bit, and that made the brunette feel much better.

"Jade will kill me." She toyed with another sequin, cringing inwardly. Jade, everything led back to Jade, didn't it? She hated that with everything inside of her.

"Yeah, maybe she will kill you, and then me afterwards. But that won't make me love you any less." The boyish smile returned, only smaller. "If I'm risking something by being with you, then frankly I don't care. You're worth that, Tori."

He was about to say something else, but he wasn't given the chance to. Tori's lips, which were coated in cherry lip gloss, connected with his coffee laced ones. All unsaid words and feelings were poured into the kiss, the kiss both of them had been waiting on for so long. Her fingers gently gripped his hair and his strong arms encircled her petite waist. For now, Jade West was merely an afterthought.

In that moment, Vega had Oliver, and Oliver had Vega. Their temporary worries had melted quickly, the only things on the forefront of their minds simply being each other.

Was it perfect, which was such an overused word to describe something as special as a kiss? Maybe so. But the fact that it was right, and they both knew it in their hearts, was the greatest thing of all.

* * *

_**Review? I reposted this, as you can see. Also, leave a comment; I might turn this into a multichap fic. Not sure yet.**_

_**:)**_

_**-AJ-**_


	2. Two

You know how when you're in love with someone and the two of you kissed but nobody knows about it and you're afraid that someone will find out and go tell the girl that hates your guts and then she'll take those guts and rip them out?

That's how it is for Tori right about now. And frankly she absolutely hates it.

Okay so, maybe Jade wouldn't rip out her guts, although the brunette knew she wouldn't hesitate to try. And, speaking honestly, Jade didn't hate Tori or her guts as much as she did say, when she first arrived at Hollywood Arts.

Still, even though nearly two weeks had passed since she and Beck's "moment" on the beach, Tori felt awful. Her mind kept playing tricks on her and her insides felt like jelly. It was almost as if she were hiding the whereabouts of a maniacal serial killer from the police.

_Quit exaggerating, Tori! _She mentally scolded herself, grabbing the bowl of popcorn from her kitchen counter and plopping down on the couch, preparing to watch a new episode of Celebrities Underwater. _Jade isn't a maniac._

As Tori powered the TV on, the doorbell rang and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Maybe that was Jade with a new, shiny pair of scissors, ready to cut her open for kissing her ex boyfriend. For a quick moment, Tori thought of grabbing all the snacks she could find from the pantry, racing upstairs and then locking herself in her room.

Then again, Trina would wonder where her seaweed snacks were (honestly that had to be the _worst_ food Tori had ever put in her mouth), and then her cover would be blown.

The doorbell rang once again, and Tori realized that she needed to answer it before someone else did. Gathering up her courage, Tori braced herself and went to open the door. To her relief, Beck happened to be behind the door and not Jade. She managed a smile and stepped aside, letting him in.

"Hey, you good?" He asked while shrugging off his jacket and draping it over a chair. "You look like you just saw a ghost."

"Totally fine." She adjusted her glasses and pushed back some of her hair. "What brings you here?"

"I came to see you. Seems like we haven't talked in forever." He smiled, snaking his arms around her waist and pulling her to him. Tori's stomach started to churn as she looked up at him. He had to be the only guy that had this effect on her. "That, and Jade is coming by so the three of us can talk."

As he leaned in for a kiss, Tori began to respond positively, but that was when the realization of what he'd just said hit her with full force. "You did _what?!_" She screamed, using her hands to gently push him away. Her mind started to race and images of Jade looming over her dead body with a gleam in her eyes started to flash through her mind.

"How could you invite Jade here? I can't deal with that right now! She'll murder me, don't you understand?" She grabbed fistfuls of his flannel shirt and shook him in order to better emphasize her point. "I'm not ready for this, and you can't expect me to-"

"Whoa, hey, Victoria, calm down." He seized her wrists and prevented her from finishing her sentence. He rarely called her by her full name unless it was serious. "First off, no yelling. Yelling isn't good." He freed one hand and started to smooth some of her hair back in its place, just like he did when Ponnie was terrorizing her.

She opened her mouth in order to protest, but then she saw a tiny smile attempting to form on his lips. She gasped and smacked his chest. "This isn't funny!"

"Yes, it is!" He stifled a chuckle as she broke away from him, glaring. "Honestly Tori, don't you think you're going over the top? Just a little?"

She groaned, not seeing any further reason to be mad at him, and she plopped down on the love seat. "I guess so, yeah...but it still won't do any good! Jade will just get mad at us both and then leave."

"Ah, but you don't know that." He countered, taking a seat next to her. "We can't keep avoiding this, Tor. It's gonna come up sooner or later."

She folded her arms, clearly upset. "But I don't want to face it right now!"

He tapped her nose, still in a playful mood. "You're cute when you're mad."

"Can't you be serious for one second?"

"Sure, but first I need to convince you that Jade won't rip out your guts with scissors."

"How did you even know that I was-"

Three sharp, quick raps on the door put their conversation to a halt. Beck stood while Tori froze, rooted to the spot. Why did this have to happen right now?

"I um, I think I've got some homework to do, bye!" She leapt from the love seat and tried to bolt for the stairs, but he grabbed her arm and stopped her.

"I don't think so. It's Saturday, and you're staying right here. Besides, this is your house and you should be opening the door, am I right?"

_He is having way too much fun with this,_ She thought to herself. Seeing as running away wasn't going to solve matters, she groaned and poked her tongue out at him, mentally vowing to make him pay somehow for getting her into this position. Hand trembling, she reached for the knob and turned it open, revealing a pissed off Jade West.

"Don't think I'm here to hang out, I'd rather slam my tongue-"

"In a car door?" Beck finished for her, stepping out from behind Tori with a sly grin. The dark-haired girl's eyes went wide with surprise. "What is he doing here? Cat said it was girls night. That's the only reason why I came."

Beck shrugged. "Me and Cat worked a little something out earlier." He stepped aside, gesturing his arm towards the living room. "Won't you come in?"

Jade glared daggers at him, folding her arms as she stalked inside. Tori looked up at her and tried to smile, something the other girl didn't bother to return.

"Anybody mind telling me why in God's name we're all here?" Jade asked, looking between her ex and her frenemy. "Or are we just gonna sit and watch Tori's stupid TV?"

"It's not stupid..." Tori muttered under her breath.

Beck sighed, smoothing the few wrinkles on his jeans. "We're here because Tori and I have something to talk to you about."

Jade cocked an eyebrow. "What is it? Is Tori leaving the school?"

Tori rolled her eyes as a small smirk touched Jade's lips. "No, it's not that, it's something else..." Fear rose up in her stomach for the umpteenth time. How was she even going to say this? _"So yeah, I kissed your ex boyfriend and I really liked it, but please don't be mad at me and whatever you do, don't kill me!"_ She glanced over at Beck for some sort of assistance, only to find that he too, was at a momentary loss for words.

"I don't have all day." She spat, annoyed. Tori closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. It was now or never.

"Okay, well Beck tried to kiss me. Well, really we almost kissed each other twice. It was during the Platinum Music Awards, and we kind of got caught up in the moment..." Tori wrung her hands, heart pounding, as she waited for Jade to stand up and start screaming at them.

She didn't.

Instead, she let out a small sigh. "Look, I already knew about that. Cat left her laptop open and I saw the whole thing on that videochat."

Tori froze. Was she hearing correctly? Oh, that made things even worse. If Jade already knew what had happened, then all this time her anger would've built up and her plan to kill Tori would've expanded even more...

"If you knew, how come you didn't say anything?" Beck's voice brought Tori out of the fog.

Jade simply shrugged. "The bit Tori gave about me being her friend and all...it got me to thinking. I guess since she stopped you, then that means she really wants to be my friend." She paused, looking over at Tori. "I guess I don't hate your guts as much as I used to, Vega."

Tori was grateful for that, but her insides were still feeling queasy. If they told her about the kiss on the beach now, Jade was sure to be furious. It was like Tori had broken her promise.

"Well, um, thanks." Was all Tori could manage. "But, there's something else you should know, too, Jade."

"What is it now?"

You know how when you're about to tell the ex-girlfriend of the guy you love something you know she's going to kill you for and you can't actually get the words out of your mouth so the guy ends up beating you to it?

That's how it is for Tori right about now. And it wasn't exactly the best feeling in the world.

Arms still folded, Jade stood. She walked over to the both of them, her gaze making Tori feel very small. The brunette closed her eyes, waiting for Jade to reveal those sharp, shiny scissors from her pocket and tear out her guts, grab Beck and then ride off into the sunset. Did she even like sunsets?

"Listen, I'm not mad."

Tori opened one eye as she received the second surprise of the night. "You're not?" She glanced over at Beck, both eyes holding utter confusion.

Jade shook her head. "Why should I be? Beck and I dated and then we broke up. He should be able to hang out with whoever he wants. We're all friends...kind of. And, if you love her, then..."

Beck looked up at her. "I really do, Jade."

She nodded. "I know."

"You're really okay with this?" By now, Beck was standing, facing Jade. He knew her very well and was trying to gauge her seriousness.

"Yeah." For the first time in a while, Jade smiled at him.

All worries and fears left Tori in that moment, and she let out a breath of relief. She stood, out stretching her arms towards Jade for a hug. "Friends?"

Jade looked at her as if she had three heads. "No."

Well, it was worth a try. Sort of.

Tori's arms fell at her sides, defeated. But instead of feeling let down, she smiled. Things hadn't turned out as bad as she thought they were going to, and thankfully the three of them were on much better terms. For now at least.

"You guys wanna grab some sushi at Nozu with me and Andre?" Jade asked as she headed for the door.

Beck shook his head. "No thanks, Tor and I are gonna chill and watch a movie. That is, if she doesn't mind?"

Tori smiled. "Not at all."

Jade shrugged and exited the house without another word. Beck closed the door behind her, letting out a large sigh as he raked a hand through his hair.

"Well, I hate to say it..."

Tori rolled her eyes but couldn't help grinning. "I know, I know. You did tell me so. But I'm sure you got a few surprises tonight too."

Beck chuckled. "I sure did." He mimicked the same position from earlier, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Are you doing okay now? You're not having anymore visions of Jade killing us, are you?"

Tori laughed, resting her hands on his sides. "No not anymore. Sorry I acted so crazy."

Beck kissed her nose. "You're cute when you're crazy."

She raised an eyebrow. "I hope that was a sincere compliment."

"As sincere as they get." He let a moment of silence pass, and he stared seriously into her eyes. "I love you, Tor. I hope you know that."

"Of course I do. And I love you more." She murmured before their lips connected.

You know how when you finally get to kiss the guy you're in love with and you finally feel relieved about it and there's no pressure in doing it?

That's how it is for Tori right about now. And frankly she's enjoying every minute of it.

* * *

**It ended up being a two-shot! I hope you liked it. :) I kinda tried to base their convo off of Opposite Date, even though those events hadn't taken place yet. I hope I did well. Also my first week of college was awesome! My roommates are so nice and my professors are...well, they're different. Different and cool. I have a sort of light workload this week, that's why I was able to repost and then write this.**

**Please review! It means a lot.**

**-AJ-**


End file.
